


The Path of the Golden Poppy

by Sugar_and_Salt



Category: EXO (Band)
Genre: Fantasy, M/M, MAMA Elements, War, Whimsical, alternative universe, i guess
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-28
Updated: 2021-01-28
Packaged: 2021-03-13 14:15:37
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,109
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28529814
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Sugar_and_Salt/pseuds/Sugar_and_Salt
Summary: In the middle of a war, Minseok dreams of greenery and flower rings.
Relationships: Kim Minseok | Xiumin/Zhang Yi Xing | Lay
Comments: 6
Kudos: 14
Collections: Vargavinter Round 1





	The Path of the Golden Poppy

**Author's Note:**

> this is a selfprompt.
> 
> enjoy <3

When Minseok opened his eyes, he could hear the ocean.    
There was no smell of it in the air though. No vast stretches of water, no boats, and no commands. 

Slowly, he sat up, fingers dipping into slightly damp soil. 

Around him, lush greenery and petals of plants he had never seen before. 

Above him, glimpses of a white sky shining through the gaps between thick leaves.

It was always bright white, and he couldn't recall ever seeing the sun.

The thought was as faint and fleeting as spider webs brushing bare skin, and by the time Minseok had gotten to his feet, it was forgotten already.

Looking down revealed that he wasn't wearing socks. It felt wrong, but he couldn't bring himself to care, not when the texture of plants and earth was so interesting. He felt every nook in every root, and his steps were slow and measured, feeling the earth gently welcome him, grounding him.

He walked out of the small groove, one step at a time. Where to, he didn't know. But he wanted to see more of this place. Maybe he could find the source of water he was hearing.

Despite his simple, white linen attire, he wasn't feeling cold at all. The sky above him may not be blue but the temperature was warm and mildly humid, anyway. Just enough to make passing through shadowy parts of the thicket feel soothing. 

Green. Minseok had never seen so many shades of green, had never felt such thick, healthy stems and leaves under his fingertips, couldn't remember the last time he had been alone like this. Alone in this place, alone in his head, with no insistent thoughts running constant calculations, replaying and predicting, echoing the noisy environment.

There was none of that here. Just greenery, the scent of soil, the sound of water, and a small flower growing out of one of the stems near him. It looked odd, growing like this out of nowhere, and Minseok looked down at his hand, where he knew he'd see another of its kind, one of the yellow petals wrapped around his right index finger like a living, breathing ring-

* * *

The siren went off, flashes of red light blinding him like artificial thunder.

Minseok dived out of his bed, feet naturally landing by his shoes. Driven by adrenaline, he slipped them on and reached for his jacket on the way out, closing the door before the siren's third flash could catch him in the act.

Down the corridor he speed-walked, quickly rubbing the remnants of sleep out of the corner of his now teary eyes. His shoes clicked on the scruffy, grey ground, but the sound was drowned out by the siren just as his dream was instantly put out by the cacophony of noise around him, squeezed together by his own, racing thoughts.

People made room for him as they were hurrying to their respective spots, each a trained ant in a manmade, windowless bunker.

Inside the command room, the others were already present, all gathered in front of the monitors. 

"Colonel!" Captain Park began immediately, voice vibrating with urgency. "Base four is under assault- the general has already moved to the scene, insisting you stay-"

"Give me the details," Minseok ordered, stepping right behind one of their technical whizzes clicking away at the keyboard. "And make it short."

The tone was enough to snap some sense into his Captain, who rattled down every crucial information they had.

Minseok's eyes were scanning the maps and readings, recording no usage of elemental arts but plenty firepower to compensate, and a long-range approach. Nothing they shouldn't be able to handle but the fact that the general himself had moved closer to the scene was worrying.

"What are your orders, sir?" Captain Park prodded, obviously hating to rush him. Minseok didn't bat an eye over the subtle display of disrespect.

"It's unlikely that they'll start involving the elements, but we cannot entirely ignore the possibility," Minseok said immediately, leaning closer to the screens, and then whirling around to the large table containing their map. Small figurines of different colors were spread out, and none of the blue ones was to be found near the base. Though that could have changed over the course of... he checked the clock. Had he really slept only three hours? It felt like ten while at the same time, he felt his mind and body racing on nothing but hormones alone.

He tapped the wooden frame of the map, staring at the only specks of color in the room. In his head, he shifted the pieces around, trying to see... trying to predict the enemy's next move.

"We're staying put," he said finally. Captain Park exhaled; whether in relief or worry, he didn't know.

"The General is going to take control of the local forces and handle the conflict. Soojung, can we get a reading on area 26? I don't trust the sudden radio silence on that end."

"Yessir," he heard from behind, with more furious tapping following. 

"Tell your unit to be on standby, Captain," he added, and Park saluted, moving fast enough to send his unruly curls bouncing.

"Yessir," he said earnestly, before hurrying away. 

He was a good kid. Which was why Minseok would love not to have him here. 

But letting sentimentalities blur his judgement might end up costing more than one life, so he massaged his forehead, pressing against the upcoming headache, and focused on the map.

There was no time to think about this dream of his, not until hours later, when things had calmed down - enough, at least, for the General to order him to get some rest, and to do so in his private room and not in the corner of the control room. When was the last time he'd slept? Minseok couldn't remember at that point, eyes red and head still pounding as he tumbled down the hallway and forced himself to take a shower before collapsing on his bed.

The warm water had been dizzying, and for a moment, the sound of it prattling against the tiles reminded him of the ocean. 

All that greenery... he really had seen the same dream again. He used to strike it up to subconscious, delusional yearning for what the elements had taken from them upon awakening. But part of him couldn't deny the oddity about it. How could he dream so vividly when every fiber of his being was screaming for sleep, and how could he ever picture plants and trees the way he did? It had been so long that he wasn't sure if he could even recall the texture or sight of real grass - much less invent plants and flowers as exotic as the ones he kept dreaming about.

Still, even the pale memory of feeling raw tree bark under his fingertips was enough to make him feel somewhat wistful.

If only the plants hadn't suddenly died... if only he could find a place where they were still growing, unhindered... they'd surely find a way to make peace again. There would be no more need to fight for resources the way they had been doing for the past year.

All these were the delusional ramblings of an exhausted mind but there was no stopping them, anyway, so Minseok had no choice but to lay down, damp hair wetting the cushion as he drifted off to blurry specks of green and yellow dancing before his closed eyes.   
  


* * *

  
When Minseok came to, it was to ocean sounds and a small ring was on his finger. It was very simple with a single, thin, flower stalk and a flower in the center. This time, he checked for it right away, dimly remembering it. This time, the groove he was sitting in was covered in flowers, growing from the ground and twirling up branches and tree bark as if they were nothing more than fertile soil. He saw a lot of white, as well as shades of pink and orange and even more colors he had last seen years ago.

None of the flowers were yellow though. 

The image of a yellow flower growing right out of a tree flashed up in his mind.

And Minseok got to his feet, toes digging into the soft, cool earth and fingertips gingerly holding onto a tree as he took a deep breath, inhaling the sweet scent of nature.

And he started to search.  
  


* * *

  
Day and night had long started to blur with the absence of the sun and a clear rhythm to adhere to. Minseok was awake when he was needed or whenever the siren went off, and he went to bed whenever he could afford it. He could only thank the heavens that he managed to fall asleep at all, and that his mysterious, reoccurring dreams seemed to refresh him rather than tire him out even further. He didn't tell anyone about them since they didn't seem to be a sign of him losing his mind - at least that's what he told himself.

Deep down, he knew that a small, selfish part of him yearned for them almost more than it yearned for sleep itself.  
  


* * *

  
At first, Minseok hadn't been able to think purposeful thoughts as he took in the nature around him. As days flew by, however, his consciousness became more lucid; as if every dream was a barely visible layer lying atop the previous ones. 

When he came to this time, he not only remembered the flower ring, but also the flowers he had found the last time. He remembered following the trail until he reached a ravine where the sun was actually shining against the foliage above, bathing everything in a rich green. It had been absolutely stunning so Minseok didn't even bother asking why the sun didn't seem to shine anywhere else. This place wasn't supposed to make sense.

It was supposed to... do what?

Somehow, Minseok was sure that he had to follow the flowers. That  _ this  _ was the purpose of all of this. 

He pushed further that day, crossing the ravine and climbing up into a rocky area. Wherever he found a yellow flower the next was never too far, and this time, he could spot it sitting innocently between rocks. For some reason, he didn't seem to get tired even after walking for what felt like an hour. The state of the sky above him had changed back to the bright white but hadn't dimmed in the slightest, and by the time he reached the flower, there were no more trees shielding him from the vast sea of clouds above. 

How odd, Minseok thought.

Everything about this place was so perfect, yet the sky was completely clouded. Then again, maybe a cloudy sky was much more healthy and alive than a blank, cerulean one.

He sank to the ground by the small flower, holding up his hand to compare it to the one on his finger. 

"You came."

He turned around, towards the owner of the voice-

-and awoke to the semi-darkness of his room. Outside, soldiers were walking down the hallway, noisily chatting.

For the longest time, he simply lay there, his right hand digging into the blanket.

No siren and no alarm had woken him.

Out of sheer instinct, he felt for his right index finger.

Of course the ring wasn't there. 

* * *

  
When the elements had come to their violent awakening, they had not only taken the planet's most valuable resources, they had also blessed people by settling in their veins. Minseok himself considered his very own repercussions a gift, and it had played a deciding factor in more than one conflict he’d been part of. 

In his dreams, though, the cold refused to dance with him. It neither listened nor complied, and Minseok only noticed when he found a tiny stream one day. It was then that he realized he hadn't exactly missed his new gift. He didn't need the cold to shield him because there was nothing to protect himself from. No desperate people in uniforms, no weapons pointed his way. No enemy. 

Which meant that whoever was here with him wasn't an enemy either. Somehow, Minseok was certain of that.

"You should rest."

Minseok didn't immediately turn around this time, keeping his eyes trained on the flower he'd been cradling.

"Who are you?" he heard himself ask, forcing himself not to move.

"Why do you want to know?"

The voice was soft-spoken and gentle, but there was a warm timbre at its core. It probably belonged to a young male.

"Why wouldn't I?" he asked back. 

"That's not a good answer," the voice responded, not sounding particularly teasing or angry. 

Minseok swallowed. And thought about it.

"I just... have to," he admitted eventually. It may be pathetic and nonsensical, but it was the truth. He had to know. Because this was the only human sharing this dream of his. Because he needed confirmation whether or not this was simply a vivid figment of his imagination or something else.

To his surprise, the voice chuckled at what had to have been a dissatisfying response.

"Do you?" it rasped out eventually, sounding... yearning, almost.

Minseok turned his head ever so slightly, trying to slowly, gradually look behind him-

-and awoke in the command room, with his trusted Captain shaking him.

Despite the metallic smells and sounds around him forming the familiar sensory image of a war base, he was certain that the scent of a flower was lingering in the air. 

After that, it felt like Minseok had kicked something loose within him.

_ He had to know.  _

It was as if that phrase, that very moment, had somehow carved the dream into his consciousness, allowing him to recall much more of it than he'd previously been able to. There was no real time to do so but during the continuous string of emergencies and strategy meetings as well as the few, quiet times he was by himself, the dream felt like a single candle flame in the darkness, keeping him from getting crushed by the weight of it all. 

The war wasn't going to stop so he had to keep going, to keep trying. And if the only levity he had was one created by his very own mind, then so be it.

As he lay down in his unusually messy room screaming of neglect, he quietly wondered whether he was losing his mind. As he fell asleep, it was to the sound of the ocean in his ears.  
  


* * *

  
Minseok didn't hear the voice that night but that was alright. He'd find the source of it on his own. 

He had crossed a forest, meadows and canyons, and the flowers were increasing in numbers, going from long travels between them to almost forming a trail. And at the end of said trail, he'd meet-

Someone. Someone with a light tone, someone strong enough to show hues of vulnerability, someone who wished for him to get some rest.

If he was being honest with himself, Minseok had absolutely no idea who was waiting for him but the nagging urge to find him had only grown stronger and was now absolutely unquestionable.

He almost slipped as the fine stones under his feet gave way for sand. The feeling filled him with excitement.

So close, he was so close.

His steps picked up as he walked past more and more flowers, growing right out of the stone walls he was holding onto, slipping past narrow walls and asking of him to press himself through crevices until suddenly-

he could see the ocean.

Rock walls made way for vast, empty stretches of cream-colored sand. 

And out of the sand, with no rhyme nor reason, grew countless flowers, some of them dots of red and orange, blue and violet. Most of them were yellow though.

As Minseok slid into the warm sand, toes helplessly trying to gain hold, his eyes were not trained on the ocean, however. They were resting on the person sitting in a circle of flowers, right by the shore. Now that his goal was in sight, his steps slowed down, gravity increasing just as his fear did. People liked to claim that people of Minseok's rank were immune to fear, but Minseok knew better. Fear was a constant, icy cold vice that even his own, elemental awakening couldn't loosen. He was constantly afraid, and considered this fear to be what kept him grounded.

This, however, was a different kind of fear. One that didn't feel so terrible.

It took him a sad amount of time to realize that he was  _ anticipating  _ meeting this person. 

The mysterious man sat with his back to him, revealing nothing but a honey blonde mop of hair and clothing as white as Minseok's own. 

There were stray leaves and petals mingling with the sand, and he had to look down to make sure he didn't harm any of the flowers. 

The stranger didn't turn, not even when Minseok was close enough to reach out and place a cautious hand on his shoulder. There was a distinct tension running through his muscles, one that Minseok was hypersensitive to, just like every other sensation occurring in this place.

When he did turn his head, he locked eyes with Minseok immediately, as if he'd been well aware of his presence in the first place.

His eyes had the color of the ocean and something in Minseok slipped into place. 

He dropped down, knees digging into the sand and plants.

_ This, _ Minseok thought, watching the man carefully intertwine their fingers,  _ was right.  _

Around him, the sand was gone, buried under a sea of flowers and grass, a green blanket that seemed to stretch out towards the horizon, caressing the water surface and canyons alike, but Minseok hardly realized any of that. As soon as he managed to tear his gaze off the other’s flower ring - the one identical to his - he couldn't stop staring into the other's eyes, taking in his gentle features and wondering where he'd seen them before.

He had seen this face somewhere.

Covered in dust, with streaks of dirt matting down his hair, the place where he'd seen him was-  
  


* * *

  
Minseok awoke with a start, sweat-soaked and heaving for air.

And with the memory of bright eyes burnt into his mind.

He swung himself out of bed, not even bothering with his shoes. He could feel the dust and tiny stones under his feet as he raced across the cold floor, flying past the command room, ignoring the way people yelled after him.

With one hand gripping the metal railing, he ran down the stairs, taking the last door leading to the basement area. Only then did he become aware of the familiar, breathless voice calling out to him.

"Colonel - Minseok! What's wrong?"

Minseok burst into the control room, scaring off the lone observer, and came to a skidding halt before the monitors, allowing his Captain to catch up with him. 

"What's- wrong?" he huffed out, swallowing heavily, as Minseok smashed away at the keyboard with impatience.

"I need to know where our prisoner is-"

"What prisoner?" his Captain asked, already slipping into a free chair, hands hovering over the keys. Minseok immediately gave up his futile attempt at handling the database.

"The weird one," he barked, "the one who came to  _ us. _ I- need to know where he's kept."

He didn't see the concerned looks thrown his way, decided not to see them in favour of rubbing his temples. It was him and there was no doubt about it.

Months ago, an unarmed civilian from the enemy territory had approached them with his arms outstretched, showing no sign of fear as he handed himself over. He'd been believed to be a spy, or, if they were in luck, simply a mentally ill person.

But as Minseok flew down another flight of stairs, seeing dots of yellow fly by, he knew better.

He'd come searching for him. And his reason was no more specific and purposeful than Minseok's own.

He heard people yell, heard the commotion before he rounded the corner and saw it. 

Around the cell door, stray flowers were sprouting out of seemingly nothing, sprinkled over the walls and ground.

Without a word, he ripped the key card from one of the panicked soldiers, opening the door.

There, in the middle of the room, sat prisoner X-7 from the Northern Republic, Zhang Yixing.

And he was smiling.

There was dust on his face, dirt on his dark, muddy-looking clothes, but his eyes were of a clear blue.

The strange wave of warmth returned, as well as a feeling he couldn't name.

Right. He felt  _ right.  _

"You-" he began, for once completely out of words.

The other tilted his head, shooting him a curious look.

"I?" he echoed, a hint of playfulness resting in the single syllable, a speck of color in a desert of dust.

Minseok shook his head even as he approached him.

As he dropped down to his knees before him.

"It's you," was all he breathed out. 

Around them, the silence was deafening. He knew a handful of soldiers were gathered in the doorway, staring at them in alarm, waiting for the situation to make sense.

"And it's you," the man murmured quietly, one hand raising to cup the side of Minseok's face, eyes gentle but firm, inquiring and secure even as his voice frazzled into yearning, and all of that made perfect sense to Minseok because he felt the same.

"I didn't dare hope this would happen," the man whispered. "But I had to try, anyway."

"You came here for me," Minseok muttered, lying a hesitant palm over Yixing's, whose smile returned at that, staying small and strangely strong at the same time.

"As you came here for me."

"Is that your elemental power? Showing people dreams?" Minseok inquired, giving in to the weak voices demanding rationalization and explanations. Yixing shook his head.

"Then how?”Minseok asked, feeling more helpless than he’d allowed himself to feel in a long time. “How did you do this?"

Yixing tilted his head, seemingly thinking about it.

"I didn't do anything at all. The dream began when I was near this base, and I decided that I had to find you."

"Me? Why?" Minseok asked, even though the answer appeared to dance on the tip of his own tongue already.

Yixing smiled, seemingly sharing his thoughts.

"I just had to."

With this, he lowered his hand to clasp Minseok's in his own. 

Around them, colors were bleeding into the bleak background as grass grew around them, digging its way through asphalt with soundless, effortless grace. Flowers were growing before their very eyes, crawling up the walls and starting to blossom in the most vivid colors. Behind him, he heard the soldiers scream in shock, heard them yell in astonishment, in... joy.

The plants were returning. Life was returning.

And Minseok realized all this but he couldn't bring himself to jump to his feet and let people know, couldn't bring himself to break the other's gaze as he held on to the moment. 

"We could end the war," Minseok whispered, still holding on tight to the other's hands. The effort was misplaced because Yixing wasn't attempting to draw away.

"That's right. We can," he said quietly. "All of us can. I have known people with dreams just like mine."

Minseok stared at him in confusion. More people with these dreams? That would mean that there was a connection between other people, as well. And that connection...

He looked around the lush greenery covering the entire cell, and then back at Yixing, who was still smiling, eyes narrowing as he did so. There was a light dancing in them that was too bright to stem from the meagre light source of the room. Minseok wondered whether he was the only one seeing it.

"Maybe the Elements wanted us all to get along in the first place?" Yixing suggested, and that was enough to nudge Minseok out of his stupor, ripping a weak, breathy chuckle from him.

He leaned in until he could gingerly rest his forehead against Yixing's, closing his eyes to do nothing but breathe, overwhelmed by the rush of overwhelming warmth.

The world may not yet be at peace but right now, but Minseok was.

It would be many more months until this peace had reached every corner of the world but by the time it did, even the most sheltered person in the world would know the names of the first found soulmates.

  
  


**Author's Note:**

> ...yep  
> it's a soulmate story! surprise! :)


End file.
